Editing Arthur Lowe (section)

===Stardom===
In 1968, Lowe was cast in his best remembered role, as [[Home Guard (United Kingdom)|Home Guard]] platoon leader [[Captain Mainwaring]] in the BBC sitcom ''[[Dad's Army]]'' (1968–1977). Some colleagues on the show later remarked that the role resembled him: pompous and bumbling. [[Frank Williams (actor)|Frank Williams]] said he felt this perception was unfair: "He certainly didn't suffer fools gladly and always knew his own mind, but he also had an ability to laugh at himself. Personally, I found him to be a most kind and generous man".<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.express.co.uk/showbiz/tv-radio/1459031/Dads-Army-Frank-Williams-comedy-vicar-captain-mainwaring-corporal-jones| title=Dad's Army star Frank Williams on life after the show that made him famous|access-date=11 July 2021 | work=Daily Express| first=Richard| last=Webber| date=6 July 2021}}</ref> David Croft said Lowe had to be treated with kid gloves. He had firm ideas on what he was willing to do and never took his script home, which resulted in uncertainty over his lines.<ref name="Croft EADT">{{cite news| url=https://www.eadt.co.uk/things-to-do/scriptwriter-david-croft-talks-about-the-birth-of-dad-s-2466678| title=Reliving the birth of TV classic Dad's Army with scriptwriter David Croft|access-date=5 September 2021 | work=East Anglian Daily Times| first=Andrew| last=Clarke| date=23 June 2018}}</ref> He could be pompous and over time his part was written so there was a blurring of the line between actor and character.<ref name="Croft EADT"/> An oddity of his contract was that he would never have to remove his trousers.<ref name="Independent">{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/dads-army-the-story-of-a-classic-television-show-by-graham-mccann-747678.html |title=Dad's Army: the story of a classic television show by Graham McCann |last=Sale |first=Jonathan |date=15 November 2000 |work=The Independent |publisher=Independent.co.uk |access-date=20 September 2010 |location=London |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100308123940/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/dads-army-the-story-of-a-classic-television-show-by-graham-mccann-747678.html |archive-date=8 March 2010 }}</ref>

Lowe held [[Conservative Party (UK)|conservative]] political views and disapproved of the [[left-wing politics]] of his co-star [[Clive Dunn]].{{sfnp|Lord|2002|p=183}} Dunn, in turn, described some of Lowe's opinions as outrageous, but as an actor rated him "ten out of ten in his field". Despite some tensions, Jimmy Perry described the cast as a "marvellous bunch of pros" with "no sort of volatile animosity between anybody".{{sfnp|Lord|2002|p=183}}

Lowe also played Mainwaring in a radio version of ''Dad's Army'', a stage play and a [[Dad's Army (1971 film)|feature-length film]] released in 1971. He played Mainwaring's drunken brother [[Barry Mainwaring]], in the series' 1975 Christmas episode "[[My Brother and I]]".

While ''Dad's Army'' was not in production, Lowe's work continued to include stage roles. In 1968, he was invited by Sir [[Laurence Olivier]] to join the [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] at the [[Old Vic]], to play divorce solicitor A.B. Raham in [[Somerset Maugham]]'s ''Home and Beauty''.{{sfnp|Lord|2002|pp=198–198}} He returned to the company in 1974 to play Stephano in [[Peter Hall (director)|Peter Hall]]'s production of ''[[The Tempest]]'', starring Sir [[John Gielgud]]. In the same year he appeared as Ben Jonson alongside Gielgud's Shakespeare in Edward Bond's ''[[Bingo (play)|Bingo]]'' at the [[Royal Court Theatre]].{{sfnp|Lord|2002|pp=224–226}}

Lowe also had prominent parts in several films directed by [[Lindsay Anderson]], including ''[[if....]]'' (1968) and ''[[O Lucky Man!]]'' (1973), for which he won a BAFTA for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. His other film parts during this period included [[Spike Milligan]]'s surreal ''[[The Bed Sitting Room (film)|The Bed Sitting Room]]'' (1969), in which he mutates into a parrot. He played a drunken butler in ''[[The Ruling Class (film)|The Ruling Class]]'' (1972) with [[Peter O'Toole]], and theatre critic Horace Sprout in the horror film ''[[Theatre of Blood]]'' (1973), in which the character is murdered by a deranged actor played by [[Vincent Price]].{{sfnp|Lord|2002|p=218}}

On television, Lowe appeared twice as a guest performer on ''[[The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968–1977)|The Morecambe and Wise Show]]'' (1971 and 1977), alongside [[Richard Briers]] in a [[Ben Travers' Farces|series of Ben Travers farces]] for the [[BBC]], as the pompous Dr Maxwell in the ITV comedy ''[[Doctor at Large (TV series)|Doctor at Large]]'' (1971) and as Redvers Bodkin, a snooty, old-fashioned butler, in the short-lived sitcom ''[[The Last of the Baskets]]'' (1971–72). Between 1971 and 1973 Lowe joined ''Dad's Army'' colleague [[Ian Lavender]], on the BBC radio comedy ''[[Parsley Sidings]]'' and he played [[Wilkins Micawber|Mr Micawber]] in a BBC television serial of ''[[David Copperfield (1974 TV serial)|David Copperfield]]'' (1974). He employed a multitude of voices on the BBC animated television series ''[[Mr. Men]]'' (1974), in which he was the narrator.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6557177.stm "Mr Men to return in new TV series"], BBC News, 15 April 2007.</ref>

In 1972, Lowe also recorded the [[novelty song]]s "How I Won The War" and "My Little Girl, My Little Boy".<ref name="Lowesingle">{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/Arthur-Lowe-with-Mike-Sammes-Singers-How-I-Won-The-War-My-Little-Girl-My-Little-Boy/master/862981|title=Arthur Lowe with Mike Sammes Singers – How I Won The War|website=[[Discogs]] |access-date=14 December 2016}}</ref>
[[File:Gloucester Docks Tall Ship Festival 2013 (3736).jpg|thumb|  ''Amazon''  in 2013]]
While touring at coastal theatres with his wife, Lowe used his 1885 former steam yacht ''[[Amazon (yacht)|Amazon]]'' as a floating base. He bought ''Amazon'' as a houseboat in 1968, but realised her potential and took her back to sea in 1971; this vessel is still operating in the [[Mediterranean]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldshiptrust.org/memberslinks.htm |title=Links with our members:Museums and Vessels:Amazon |work=World ship trust |access-date=1 October 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110913170409/http://www.worldshiptrust.org/memberslinks.htm |archive-date=13 September 2011 }}</ref> The ship had a bar with a semicircular notch cut halfway along, to enable both the portly figure of Lowe and his wife to serve behind the bar at the same time, acting as hosts during the parties they threw on board.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/dads-navy-as-captain-mainwaring-he-entertained-millions-with-his-pomposity-and-his-delusions-of-grandeur-but-the-real-arthur-lowe-fancied-himself-as-a-different-sort-of-captain-1445756.html|title=Dad's Navy: As Captain Mainwaring, he entertained millions with his pomposity and his delusions of grandeur. But the real Arthur Lowe fancied himself as a different sort of captain |access-date=12 January 2012 | work=The Independent|first=Charles|last=Nevin|date=30 October 1994}}</ref>

In an interview for a ''Dad's Army'' retrospective on [[BBC]] television in 2010, Clive Dunn described him sitting at the bar in the evenings when they were filming on location, consuming a drink which Lowe named 'Amazon' after his yacht. Dunn described the drink as comprising "[[gin]] and [[ginger ale]], with a single slice of [[cucumber]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://makemeacocktail.com/recipes/s/?s=amazon|title=Amazon&nbsp;– Cocktail Recipe|website=Makemeacocktail.com|access-date=26 August 2017}}</ref>

Lowe seldom made public political statements, but his face appeared on posters and other advertising in support of the "Voting Yes" campaign for the [[1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://flashbak.com/ephemera-from-the-1975-european-referendum-63088/ |title=Ephemera from the 1975 European Referendum |website=flashbak.com |access-date=17 October 2021}}</ref> He also appeared at a [[Conservative Party (United Kingdom)|Conservative Party]] fundraising bazaar in [[Edward Heath]]'s constituency.{{sfnp|Lord|2002|p=256}}